Tacticat

Tacticat the online sailing tactical simulator just keeps improving. In the last week or so tides have been added to the program introducing all sorts of fun new realistic effects such as being swept on to the windward mark by the current.

There’s also an action replay feature which I suggest you try if you want to gain a feel for the simulator. Go to the American Gold regatta from last night and click on where it says #6 REPLAY [SKIFF]. (You will see why I suggest this race shortly).

I hope this works on your computer. For some reasons I have to click on the link, wait a few seconds, and then click on it again to get the Java applet to load properly. (Hey, I never said it was perfect.)

Once the applet starts you can click on F1 to see the full list of commands some of which you will need to control the view in the replay. Z and X zoom in and out. W controls different displays of wind. U controls display of current. You can left-click on the display to re-center what part of the race course you are viewing.

The race countdown clock is in the top left-hand corner. There are controls at top center to pause or slow the action, and a slide to fast forward at top right.

You will see the sailors chatting to each other before the start and during the race. The exchanges about ICISC relate to my Small World post from a few days ago. You will see some dude called Litoralis foul himself on my transom just before the start and then see him whining at other boats that he thought were too slow at the start.

But note how that yellow boat aces the start, picks the correct side of the course, nails the layline (well almost) and leaves the fleet in his wake. As they say, “Even a blind nut can find a squirrel occasionally.” Or something like that.

Original post by Tillerman and software by Elliott Back

To answer my own request for good news about regatta organizers and race committees, I did sail in one regatta this year that was virtually perfect. Even though the winds were sometimes shifty, the start lines and courses were as square as could reasonably be expected. Start sequences and signals were spot on. Finishes were recorded accurately and, as soon as one race had finished, the RC started the sequence for the next race without any waiting around. There were no peanut butter and jelly unmentionables posing as regatta lunches, and the regatta results were posted on the web an hour or so after the last race. About the only thing to complain about as far as race management was concerned was that the start lines were a little short for the size of the fleet.

Off the water there was absolutely nothing to which one could take exception. No parking problems. No extra charges for food or drink. No dead skunks Brian.

On top of all that I had my best overall score in any regatta this season with a fifth place ranking. Then today I discovered that the regatta was written up on the Yachts and Yachting web page, with a brief description of a typical clumsy blunder by myself in one race. Still, there’s no such thing as bad publicity and I will try not to let the fame go to my head.

Here’s a picture from the Y&Y site of myself making a perfect mid-line start away from all the chaos at the pin end. That’s me in the pink boat with my bow just hitting the line as the gun went off.

Oh, didn’t I mention? It wasn’t a real regatta. It was the first weekly Tacticat regatta last Monday, hosted in Europe this week. For those of you not in the know, Tacticat is an Internet environment where sailors of different countries and sailing classes meet to train tactics by virtually racing each other.

As I said, virtual perfection in regatta management thanks to the brilliant minds that invented Tacticat and continue to improve it in response to feedback from users. Come join us.

Original post by Tillerman and software by Elliott Back

How important is it to be aggressive if you want to be a successful racing sailor?

A sailing magazine that I picked up in Australia started me thinking about this whole question of the role of aggression and boldness in racing. There was an article in the mag about Ben Ainslie, surely one of the accomplished sailboat racers of his generation… and likely by the time he has finished (he’s only 31) to rank as one of the greatest racers of all time.

The essence of the article was that Ben is so good because he is not afraid to be aggressive in tight situations. If the pin end of the start line is favored he will fight to win the pin. If approaching the windward mark close to the port tack layline he will not hesitate to tack under and close to starboard tackers to squeeze between them and the buoy. If the left side of the run is favored he will immediately gybe on to port after rounding the windward mark even in heavy traffic.

Hmmm. I don’t do those things. In fact most of the books I have read about sailing preach the exact opposite. Be conservative. Don’t take big risks for small gains. Play the odds. If you like the left end of the start line, avoid the crowd at the pin and find a gap a bit further up the line. Don’t jam your bow into a potential pile-up at the windward mark; instead duck a couple of starboard tackers and round in clear air above the mayhem of boats trying to luff around the buoy. Stay out of trouble. Sail clean.

I started wondering. What came first the chicken or the egg? Is Ben great because he goes for these risky, bold, aggressive moves? Or is he only able to pull off these moves because he has nerves of steel, superb boat-handling, razor-sharp reflexes, an uncanny ability to foresee developing multi-boat interactions… etc. etc.

More to the point, if an averagely talented mid-fleet sailor suddenly started to sail like Ben would their race results improve? Or would they be spending every evening of every regatta in the protest room? Speaking for myself, I suspect that if I changed my style tomorrow to always go for these daring maneuvers… win the pin in a tough fleet, approach a crowded windward mark on port tack and tack inside all the starboard tack boats… nine times out of ten I would screw up and end up doing 720’s.

On the other hand, the top sailors do have the ability to succeed in these aggressive tactics. So how do the rest of us become more like them? Do we just do it? Start going for it every time, recognizing that we will make lots of mistakes (and maybe lots of enemies) at first, but over time we will develop the skills to be more successful? Or do we ease into it slowly by being bold when racing in small fleets in which we feel our abilities are as good or better than the opposition; and continue to sail a conservative game when playing against the big boys?

Just as an experiment I’ve been practicing the aggressive approach recently in SAILX (the tactical simulator formerly known as Tacticat). I’m not sure how true a simulation of real life it is in this respect but I’m coming to believe that trying to win the pin or tacking into the inside of a pack of starboard boats at the windward mark are not as high risk moves as I once thought. Even if you end up doing a 360 I figure you usually come out ahead of where you would have been by playing a more conservative game. (Did someone say Rule 31.2? Ah yes indeed. “If a boat has gained a significant advantage in the race or series by touching the mark she shall retire”.)

So what do you think? How do you weigh up when to be daring and when to play it safe? How can a mid-fleet sailor develop a more aggressive style? What comes first… the mental attitude to be bold and daring, or the boat-handling skills to execute bold and daring moves? Chicken or egg?

Original post by Tillerman and software by Elliott Back

In the early days of the online sailing simulator, Tacticat (now sailx), some bright spark discovered that, by causing the skiff class boat to execute a certain combination of unseamanlike maneuvers, it was possible to fool the program into allowing you to keep flying the spinnaker when heading up to a close-hauled course. For a few days, anyone in the know was able to make huge gains by using this trick to sail upwind with the spinnaker flying, as the rest of the fleet looked on in awe and claimed that it was all totally unfair.

It didn’t take long for the Tacticat overlords to identify what was obviously a bug in the program, and it was soon fixed.

Who would have thought that this weird anomaly from the world of sailing software would be replicated in real life? And at the Olympic Games no less?

In the Tornado catamaran class, the Dutch and American Olympic teams have developed so-called code 0 gennakers which are designed to be carried upwind as well as downwind. Although they may be slower downwind than a normal Tornado spinnaker, the code 0 sails are apparently so much faster upwind in the expected light wind conditions in China that these two teams are almost certain to win the gold and silver medals.

So now those energetic and competitive Australians are rushing to copy the Americans and Dutch.

The British, superior and aloof as only true Brits can be, say they already tried that idea and it will only work in a narrow wind range.

And the Austrians, dour and disgruntled, are threatening to boycott the whole regatta.

Ohmigod. The Olympics are just like Tacticat. All it needs now is someone hailing, “The darker the windier” or “My tailor is rich” all the way round the course and they will be identical. (Sorry. Tacticat in-joke. You had to be there.)

Apparently there is nothing in the Tornado class rules that prohibits using a smaller spinnaker or the use of it upwind. Just to be sure the Aussies posed a couple of questions to the Chief Measurer and, according to SailJuice Blog received the following answers…

Question:
Does the non-one design ‘code zero’ upwind spinnaker contravene the class rules?

Decision:
The concept of a smaller gennaker does not contravene the class rules. Class Rule G.5.3 does not specify minimum dimensions.

Question:
Is a “dolphin strike” permitted on the bowsprit?

Decision:

No. The addition of a compression strut and associated rigging below the bowsprit spar would contravene class rules F.5″

I have no idea what “non-one design” means or what a “dolphin strike” is but it’s all starting to sound more like the America’s Cup than the Olympics. It’s only a matter of time before the lawyers jump into the fray.

My immediate reactions….

• I’m glad I sail a strict one-design class where such shenanigans are almost inconceivable.

• Who would have thunk that even a bug in Tacticat would emulate real life so well?
• If the Tornado class had aimed to ensure that they will never ever ever be invited to sail in the Olympics ever again, could they have devised a better strategy?

As they say in Tacticat, “Why cats are not olympic any more?”

Original post by Tillerman and software by Elliott Back

In the early days of the online sailing simulator, Tacticat (now sailx), some bright spark discovered that, by causing the skiff class boat to execute a certain combination of unseamanlike maneuvers, it was possible to fool the program into allowing you to keep flying the spinnaker when heading up to a close-hauled course. For a few days, anyone in the know was able to make huge gains by using this trick to sail upwind with the spinnaker flying, as the rest of the fleet looked on in awe and claimed that it was all totally unfair.

It didn’t take long for the Tacticat overlords to identify what was obviously a bug in the program, and it was soon fixed.

Who would have thought that this weird anomaly from the world of sailing software would be replicated in real life? And at the Olympic Games no less?

In the Tornado catamaran class, the Dutch and American Olympic teams have developed so-called code 0 gennakers which are designed to be carried upwind as well as downwind. Although they may be slower downwind than a normal Tornado spinnaker, the code 0 sails are apparently so much faster upwind in the expected light wind conditions in China that these two teams are almost certain to win the gold and silver medals.

So now those energetic and competitive Australians are rushing to copy the Americans and Dutch.

The British, superior and aloof as only true Brits can be, say they already tried that idea and it will only work in a narrow wind range.

And the Austrians, dour and disgruntled, are threatening to boycott the whole regatta.

Ohmigod. The Olympics are just like Tacticat. All it needs now is someone hailing, “The darker the windier” or “My taylor is rich” all the way round the course and they will be identical. (Sorry. Tacticat in-joke. You had to be there.)

Apparently there is nothing in the Tornado class rules that prohibits using a smaller spinnaker or the use of it upwind. Just to be sure the Aussies posed a couple of questions to the Chief Measurer and, according to SailJuice Blog received the following answers…

Question:
Does the non-one design ‘code zero’ upwind spinnaker contravene the class rules?

Decision:
The concept of a smaller gennaker does not contravene the class rules. Class Rule G.5.3 does not specify minimum dimensions.

Question:
Is a “dolphin strike” permitted on the bowsprit?

Decision:

No. The addition of a compression strut and associated rigging below the bowsprit spar would contravene class rules F.5″

I have no idea what “non-one design” means or what a “dolphin strike” is but it’s all starting to sound more like the America’s Cup than the Olympics. It’s only a matter of time before the lawyers jump into the fray.

My immediate reactions….

• I’m glad I sail a strict one-design class where such shenanigans are almost inconceivable.

• Who would have thunk that even a bug in Tacticat would emulate real life so well?
• If the Tornado class had aimed to ensure that they will never ever ever be invited to sail in the Olympics ever again, could they have devised a better strategy?

As they say in Tacticat, “Why cats are not olympic any more?”

Original post by Tillerman and software by Elliott Back

Do you know who I am?

I discovered today that I made the Sailing Hall of Fame. Well, not exactly.

But I did make the Sailx.com “who is who” page which is only for “people who are important enough”. Wow. Apparently I am important “enough”. (Sailx is the online multi-player tactical sailing simulator that I wrote about last year when it was known as Tacticat.)

But wait. Am I getting the recognition I deserve? I see that some of the other sailors are described in such terms as “one of the strongest sailors on Sailx”, “really top quality sailor”, and “top team racer, top match racer, sexy”. Whereas my entry just says, “You have to read his blog”.

Hmmm. Who writes this crap? Don’t they know who I am? How come I’m not described as “sexy”?

Actually Sailx is not as much fun as it used to be. In the old days if two boats collided the program would decide which boat it thought was at fault and impose a penalty. Of course it wasn’t perfect but, hey, it’s only a game and when did you ever meet a perfect protest committee in real life?

But somebody decided to “improve” the game so, now, if you think that another sailor broke a rule and the game didn’t apply the rules correctly you can “protest” him. There’s a whole forum for these protests where the sea lawyers spend hours arguing the toss back and forth about whose pixels were in the right and whose pixels were in the wrong. Here’s an example of one dude pressing his case in favor of his pixels being right …

So, you are suggesting that R11 and R17 conflict with R18? I disagree and find the opposing arguments insufficient. Rules 11, 17 and 18.2(a) do not conflict and can be applied simultaneously.

The applicable part of R18 required me to give X room to round the mark. I did so. The requirements of R11 that X keep clear of a leeward boat DO NOT conflict with the requirements of R18 that I give room to round. “Room” and “keeping clear” are two DIFFERENT requirements imposed on two DIFFERENT boats and both can (and must) be simultaneously met without conflict.

Likewise, the proper course required by R17.2 is not in conflict with the requirements of room to round under R18. X’s proper course around the mark and his proper course after gybing in no way conflicted with my requirement to give him room to do so. In fact, I did give X room to round the mark and to gybe. Contact only occurred because X was sailing below his proper course (R17.2) and failed to keep clear of a leeward boat (R11).

Oh geeze. It’s only a game dude. Chill out.

Another example of how bad it has become… Regular readers of this blog, all three of you, will know that I am quite a vocal sailor in real life. Sometimes I like to sing while sailing. Sometimes I hail a magic spell that makes my competitor capsize. I’m much the same in Sailx. One day I was having a free and frank exchange of views with a fellow sailor during a Sailx race and I accidentally typed “u geard” instead of “you heard”. This dude then “protested” me for making a derogatory remark and went on the protest forum to recommend that, among other things, I should be banned from the game. Apparently he thought I had called him a “geard”! In what language is “geard” an insult? What does it mean in any case? What a hoot!

Wait a minute. This “who is who” page is part of a wiki. Hmmm. Let’s see. Quick edit. Save. That’s better.

It now reads: Tillerman. Handsome, sexy and wicked. Thinks Sailx used to be more fun before the sea lawyers ruined it. You have to read his blog.

Truthiness rules.

Take that. You Geard.

Original post by Tillerman and software by Elliott Back

So who should I invite to my own imaginary dinner party for sailors real or fictional, living or dead, my own version of the dinner party I asked other bloggers to write about for this month’s group writing project Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?

Should I go for famous real life sailors I admire like Robin Knox-Johnston and Ben Ainslie, or should I sail off into the lands of myth and legend and invite Ulysses and Erik the Red? Should I get together with some of my real life sailing pals like That Guy and The Other Guy, or should I invite some of the friends I have made through blogging?

None of the above.

Here is my guest list…

• aestela
• CAN_2809
• Dogwatch
• Enterprise
• LaserManDan
• Sailing_Rugger

Never heard of them? Let me enlighten you. The sailors on my list are some of the leading lights in the online multi-player sailing tactical simulator known as Sailx.

I’ve never met any of these guys in the flesh. (At least as far as I know. You never know who the people you are sailing against really are in Sailx. And I’m assuming they are all guys, not gals. They sound like guys.) But I have “interacted” with them all in various ways within the Sailx universe and so, although I only know them as little groups of pixels looking like toy sailboats, I do feel I have learned something about their personalities.

Sailing_Rugger is currently leading the Sailx rankings so I’d want to pick his brains about how he manages to sail so well. We “met” quite a while ago during the wild and woolly early days of the game when it was still known as Tacticat so he feels like an old friend.

CAN_2809 is a pretty fine sailor too, and I’m inviting him because he’s also a software engineer and, judging by what he’s written in the Sailx forum, he’s super smart at working out ways to “hack” Sailx like finding ways to see the start line or the wind over the course better. Hey, a duffer like me who is as bad at virtual sailing as he is at real-life sailing needs all the help he can get.

LaserManDan is one of the Sailx regulars, and founder member of one of the top teams on Sailx. I’m inviting him because we discovered while chatting in between races that he is the son of one of the guys I used to sail with at my first (real-life) sailing club, the one I wrote about in Where It All Started. Hey Dan, bring your Dad to the party too.

And then we have Dogwatch and Enterprise. I’m inviting them because they were the main players in a couple of virtual protest hearings I recently got involved in on the Sailx protest forum. Yeah, I know I complained before about how the “sea lawyers” have ruined the game. But Dogwatch took the trouble to protest me in a couple of races, so I entered into the spirit of the game by doing a bit of sea-lawyering to defend myself.

Neither of the protests were clear cut so I argued my case with every technique I could devise. When the facts were against me I argued the rules. When the rules were against me I argued the facts. I introduced various side-issues to muddy the waters. I pounced on the slightest mistake made my opponent and used his own words against him. Emotions ran high. The arguments raged on and on as Dogwatch turned out to be as fierce and as devious an advocate as myself.

Enterprise was the “moderator” who effectively volunteered to be the protest committee chairman for us, to hear all the arguments from the protagonists and any other players or moderators who wanted to express an opinion, and then to make a decision. I probably drove him crazy with my persistence and verbal diarrhea. In the end he exercised the wisdom of Solomon and decided to leave one protest “unresolved” (effectively a win for me in its scoring impact) and decided the other one in Dogwatch’s favor.

So I’m inviting Enterprise and Dogwatch to the party to show there are no hard feelings and because they both sound like chaps who are extremely knowledgeable about sailing and the racing rules. I’m sure we’d probably all be enjoying another heated argument after a couple of beers.

Last but not least, we couldn’t have a Sailx party without aestela. Aestela is the founder, creator, chief programmer, chief moderator, chief “everything” behind Sailx, a.k.a as “god” within the game. Sailx wouldn’t exist without his drive and vision. I’m sure the rest of us would raise a toast (or three) in his honor at the party.

Cheers.

Original post by Tillerman and software by Elliott Back